Crazy Like a Fox

From The Nation:

"Spare a thought, and maybe even a dime, for Kenneth Gladney. In August he and other members of the right-wing St. Louis Tea Party arrived at a town-hall meeting organized by Missouri Democrat Russ Carnahan to lobby against universal healthcare. In the spirit of this fraught summer, a fight broke out, ending in six arrests.

Who threw the first punch depends on whom you ask. But who got the worst of it was fairly clear. Gladney was taken to the emergency room with injuries to his knee, back, elbow, shoulder and face and ended up in a wheelchair. His troubles were just beginning. Recently laid off, this particular anti-health reform protester, it turned out, had no health insurance. Last heard, he was still accepting donations for his medical expenses.

It's not difficult to ridicule the American right. Its peculiar blend of paranoia, mania, fantasy and misanthropy has been given full rein these past few months. Those who demanded in July to see Obama's birth certificate (which does exist) ended August invoking the British healthcare system's "death panels" (which do not). That most of their claims were verifiably false was of little consequence--to them at least. At one point they insisted that if scientist Stephen Hawking were British and subject to the National Health Service, he would be dead, even though Hawking is British, alive and grateful to the NHS for his care.

So progressives could be forgiven for branding the right as stupid and crazy. But they would also be wrong. For if this is madness, there is great method in it. It is well organized and well funded. It has proven effective in mobilizing support, creating "controversy" where little exists and disrupting and disorienting whatever national conversation there is. If it is stupid, then what does it say about us, since time and again it manages to outmaneuver the left? Annoying, bizarre, incoherent, divisive, intolerant, small-minded, misinformed, ill informed and disinformed, certainly. But stupid and crazy--anything but. It takes considerable skill to convince people that something that is clearly good for them--like universal healthcare--is not. If the right is crazy, it is crazy like a Fox News presenter. Reducing a political strategy or belief to a psychological disorder to dismiss and ridicule its proponents may be comforting. But it also abandons any hope of defeating it or stymieing its influence beyond therapy."

Read the rest of this article here:

http://www.thenation.com/doc/20090928/younge

The Funeral

I had my hair done yesterday morning and then after lunch, Bob and I went to Bartlesville to the funeral of the doctor that delivered my last two children. He was 88. I had stayed with him all those years. He began practice in 1956 and Leslie was born in 1957. He was a wonderful family doctor. He saw me through some of the best times of my life...and some of the worst.

He was a lifelong smoker and I thought lung cancer would finally get him but it was his kidneys that failed. He had fallen and seemed to be getting better. His children all went back to their practices (they are all three doctors) and he died that night. That happens a lot. People think there is improvement and then the person dies. My stepdad was like that.

Anyhow, after the funeral we noticed there wasn't a soul there that we knew. We left Bartlesville in 1969 and moved to Caney, Kansas. We continued to go to Bartlesville to doctor with him even after we moved to Coffeyville in 1981, when I went to work at the radio station here.

In fact, he just retired a couple of years ago. He was one of those rare doctors that gave every patient as much time as they needed. He always asked about the kids whenever I went in for anything. He was a great doctor.

He practiced in Dewey because that is where he wanted to live..just outside of Bartlesville. He was a very typical small town doctor..but very talented. He will be missed.

A Successful Party

Our covered dish party last night was a real success. Only one person did not come. So I had twelve here in my small house. We put six at the dining room table, four at TV trays, and two at the breakfast bar. After everyone left, I rinsed the dishes and loaded the dishwasher. I still had most of the stainless and all of the dessert dishes to wash and dry in the sink by hand and we went to bed shortly before 10:00...exhausted.

We had five six white people and six black people...all great people. We have developed several good friendships over this entire time. After dinner we share something of ourselves. The first question was just about how long we have lived in the community but the other was whether or not we were aware of "white privilege". That elicited a lot of comment. We white people have no idea how privileged we really are.

But two of my dearest friends are not connected with the organization at all. One is the women who worked at the cable office with my daughter twenty years ago and her husband who was our mailman when we moved here in this house six years ago. Whenever I see them, I get a huge hug. They are such neat people!

But after I cleaned up after the dinner, after everyone left, I was thoroughly exhausted. I took an Aleve and a bath and went to bed. But it was a success!

Interesting Day

This is going to be an interesting day. This evening I have the quarterly PINCH covered dish dinner party. (People for Institutional and Community Harmony). This is an organization Bob belongs to. It is meant to bring together people from the black community and people from the white community for dinner and a visit. The philosophy of the organization is that if we socialize, we will get to know one another and become closer friends. In our community, most of the black community has chosen to remain segregated on the east side of town. That is they did until the flood of 2007. FEMA and the refinery (the refinery had inadvertently left a valve open at their flooded property and that oil spread over the entire east side community..coating everything with oil) bought out that entire side of town and took down most all of the housing there....about 300 homes. That meant that the black community was forced to either leave town to find housing or move into the existing rental property within the white community. So far that seems to have worked fine. Now we are attempting to get to know one another better.

I agreed to host this quarter's dinner. I knew my house was small and I could only seat six at our dining room table and four more at a card table in the living room. There was also room for two at our breakfast bar. That would have been twelve.

Earlier this week, one of the women whose husband started this organization, called me to see whom all I had invited. I gave her the list of invitees and what they were bringing to the dinner. She called back later to ask me to invite two others that were regular attenders. I told her about my space problems and she said she and another of the white women would draw straws to see which couple of them would bow out...keeping my number at 12. Well, I didn't want that because I wanted to keep the racial balance. So I told her I would put up two TV trays to accommodate all 14. I bought a ham yesterday and will put it on to bake this afternoon.

I doubt that they'll all show. It's supposed to rain and some of the older ones will probably decide not to come. But our little house will have a crowd if they do.

Rainy Day

It rained all morning and there is flooding forecast. Slinky and Missy stayed in all morning because it was blowing rain. It was flooded when we went to Independence for the Ministerial Association meeting. We had to take a different route. The meeting ran over it's time. The new president is very unorganized and had no printed agenda. I like him very much but between him and the new Vice President, who is very long winded, it will be hard to get anything done. I like him too but he has problems getting to the point. He had appointed none of the committees and our first special service is the Thanksgiving service.

We took some things out to Leslie later on and then went to Wal Mart and bought our ham for tomorrow evening's dinner. I have no idea how many of the 14 invited to the dinner will actually come. It is supposed to rain again so we may be very small group.

I did some cleaning this morning although the house is pretty clean from the cleaning I gave it Monday. I will spruce it up again tomorrow.

Another Busy Day

This will be another busy day. I have been to my sister's already this morning. We will leave in an hour for my board meeting. Then we will meet Leslie for lunch.

It's raining lightly now so I don't know what we will do this afternoon. We will have a light supper tonight.

I talked to Scott this morning. He has met a nice woman and had a dinner date last night with her. He has another date lined up for Friday night. He will have to be careful of his money to make it until payday.

Taresa, his ex-wife, came while he was in New York last week and picked up the rest of her stuff. He is well rid of her. He tried hard to make it work but she was not happy. So, it's over. I hope this new woman he dated last evening will work out. He needs someone badly. He is not a person who can be happy alone. Both our sons are their father's boys..that's for sure. I enjoy my solitude. But, of course, I haven't had to deal with the alternative on a long term basis.

I had a hard time getting to sleep last night after talking to Keith, our older son. He is in such a horrible situation. It is great that he has gone back to church. That will be very helpful. I advised him to keep his life very simple and do nothing to complicate it any further.

Better Monday

I woke up this morning feeling just fine. Whatever it was that gave me that 100 degree temp left as fast as it arrived. That's fine with me. I'm not interested in being sick.

I worked on my budget this morning. I have decided that I must get a job after the first of the year...if there is anything available...but first I must have my left foot worked on again in January or February. I had bunion surgery for it four years ago but it failed almost immediately and now I have an even a larger bunion. I know I won't be able to stand on my feet to work this way so I will have to get the bunion redone with the Keller procedure...whatever that is.

I did a couple of loads of laundry this morning and changed our bed. I have the bulletin ready to go when I get out to church next.

The church driveway apron is lovely. It makes our church driveway and parking lot look so much better. John will go out there the first chance he gets and spread the rest of the gravel around.

Sunday Sickness

I wasn't feeling just real perky this morning before church but since I woke up after three and didn't get up until four or so. I figured that was the problem and went on to church. After church we came home to pork roast, potatoes, carrots and salad. I couldn't eat it. I gave mine to Slinky. Then Bob told me to go to bed and he cleaned up the dishes.

I got my Sunday notes done before I went to bed.

Leslie called and woke me up. She has planned our "girls weekend out" for October 30, 31, and November 1st. It's been two years since we've done that. Last year she was looking for work at that time. She has a time share in Branson and that's where we'll go.

Then I slept all afternoon and then got up to watch a movie. It's some Harrison Ford movie that we haven't seen.

I still don't feel very good. I don't know what it is but it better go away pretty quickly. I have that PINCH dinner to do on Thursday. I might have to cancel if this doesn't clear right up.

I also stay with my sister on Tuesday and I believe this is the MC3 Tuesday too for my board meeting. Wednesday is Independence Ministerial Association at noon. I'm way too busy to be sick!